A Journey That Changed The World.

Chapter 882: Concentrate

Once they were finished eating, Tiamat stood up, ”Let me show you the areas where you can recover mana,” she said.

Archer nodded before standing up and putting their rubbish in the nearest bin before Tiamat took his arm and started walking down the road; as she started speaking, ”I canʼt tell you much due to an agreement between the gods.”

They passed a young couple who smiled at them. She continued, ”But when youʼre here in your physical body, you can use these spots to recover mana after frequent use. Youʼll need to increase it to use the Gate and return to Thrylos.”

”Okay, thanks for the advice,” Archer said with a smile as he noticed a forest in the distance.

As the couple strolled, he saw the sights around them, observing families and couples heading toward the nearby beach under the beaming sun. Reaching the treeline right up against the road took them ten minutes.

Tiamat began talking when they stepped into the forest, ”I know you have a huge mana pool, but use as much as you can without drawing attention to yourself, which is important as there are forces on Earth we donʼt want to disturb.”

His eyes widened in surprise as many questions came to mind. He was just about to speak, but Tiamat interrupted him, ”They are old and powerful beings. Donʼt be meddling with them, Arch. You wonʼt get anything out of it and could risk your familyʼs safety.”

He nodded in understanding as they walked on in silence. Archerʼs gaze swept over the scenery, marveling at the trees stretching in every direction and the scattered flowers. With his heightened senses, he could perceive the presence of all the animals nearby.

Archer spotted a few alligators leisurely resting in a nearby pond. Shaking his head to focus, his concentration was interrupted by Tiamat, who said, ”Earth has its charm, but nothing beats slaughtering monsters on Thrylos.”

”I agree,” he replied. ”But this place could be a good spot to relax and get away from the chaos.”

Tiamat nodded in agreement but then quickly spun around and grabbed his collar. The dragon goddess kissed him, and Archer held her waist, passionately returning the kiss just as they heard people coming down the trail they were on.

They separated and continued walking, only to be greeted by a large family. Each member greeted them. Archer noticed all of them were staring at the two of them, making him smile as one of the older women stepped forward.

She had a friendly smile while speaking, ”Hey! Are you two locals?”

Tiamat quickly answered, ”We will be moving her soon; my darlingʼs mother moved here recently. The Bennett Family?”

The older woman frowned as she nodded, ”I do, but itʼs a shame what happened to Tim; I pray to god that he returns home.”

”Iʼm sure he will turn up one day,” Archer said.

Following that, the group continued their journey while Tiamat turned off the trail and walked into the forest for an hour. Soon, they came across a pond surrounded by trees with a large boulder overlooking it.

When he saw this, Archer felt a sense of peace, but Tiamat explained, ”This is one of the areas you could use; the mana comes from an underground source deep under the pond.”

They continued their journey, and he nodded in understanding. The dragon goddess led him to several other locations, including a waterfall, a mountain summit, and a river. Each place amazed Archer with its natural beauty and primal appearance.

As the sun began to set, the two returned to town. Though Archer wanted to explore more, Tiamat preferred to relax. They rented a hotel room facing the ocean and unwinded, watching a beautiful pink hue envelope the world.

Archer sat on a balcony, looking at the empty beach, before turning to Tiamat, who was relaxing. ”How long until I can return to Thrylos?”

Her violet eyes opened as a smile appeared, ”The girls are going after the last ingredient.”

***

[Ella, Halime, Talila, Nala and Maeveʼs POV]

The five of them were sitting on Demetraʼs back as she swam along the seafloor, dodging all the Novgorod and Nightshade patrols. Since they left Draconia, the girls, including Ashoka, who remained behind, told them the attacks had increased.

Following that, Aisha deployed all but one fleet to overwhelm the enemies, and the girls witnessed this as ships started to sink above them. But they only saw it briefly as Demetra sped up and headed straight for Verdantai.

Ella took out five rings and handed them to the others while explaining, ”These are disguise rings. We need to wear them while traveling to Novgorod City, the Novgorodian capital, where the Holy Trees are kept.

”How are we going to steal them? Wonʼt the best soldiers be guarding them?” Nala questioned.

The half-elf nodded, ”We will figure that out when we reach the city, but rumors speak of the continent being on lockdown after Archer robbed them,” she said with a giggle.

Maeve, Halime, and Talila laughed, but the silver-haired elf said, ”As long as weʼre careful, we can get the Holy Leaf.”

”I heard the Novgorod Imperial Guard are the strongest soldiers on Thrylos,” Halime revealed, which made the others laugh.

”You havenʼt seen the Dragonblood Knights or the White Dragon Knights; they will become the most feared soldiers once husband begins his conquests,” the lioness commented

excitedly.

Ella looked at her curiously. ”What if he targets the Lionheart Kingdom?” she asked.

”Iʼd help him conquer it,” Nala answered without hesitation, shocking the others. But she continued, ”Iʼm in Archerʼs pride now and will do anything for him, even if it means going against my own family. Thatʼs what any loyal lioness would do.”

They all nodded in agreement, and their eyes turned to Maeve, who smiled, ”The Avaloch Kingdom hates him. I would happily help him take my homeland if he treats the people

fairly.”

”Havenʼt you seen the Draconians? The elders are fat and happy while most of the younger generation are soldiers or work for Archer somehow,” Halime exclaimed. ”That boy has brought wonders to his people; imagine what heʼd do for our homelands?”

The snake girl became passionate as she spoke, ”Once they experience the Draconian peace, they will never look back, including the Nagendrians.”

”Girls, you need to concentrate as the enemy is closer, and I need to take out a patrol to get you onto land,” Demetra abruptly spoke.

The five stopped speaking and waited for her to destroy the ships, which didnʼt take long as she shot out of the darkness and bit a Novgorodian Battleship in half with a single bite before slapping another with her tail.

As the vessels sunk, she darted toward the beach and suddenly stopped, allowing the group to jump off her. Demetraʼs gaze landed on them before bidding farewell, ”Be careful, ladies, and

make sure you return.”ʼ

After speaking, the Demon Shark dived down, and Nala transformed into her Primal form, allowing the four girls to climb onto her back. Once they were all settled, the lioness began sprinting across the landscape.

As they traveled, Ella noticed military forts scattered throughout the area, which surprised her. It was clear they had copied Draconiaʼs designs. To the half-elf, it seemed like they were simultaneously fighting the Swarm and preparing for something more significant.

Curious about their motives, Ella voiced her thoughts aloud, wondering why they were attacking Draconia. Maeve promptly explained, shedding light on the situation for everyone, ”Draconia is a growing kingdom that trades with other realms, making it rich. The Novgorod and Nightshade Empires hate that.”

Following that, they stopped speaking and turned their attention to the surrounding landscape, which was rolling hills dotted with hundreds of farms and villages. The five girls ran into no trouble until they came to a river.

Nala wanted to jump across, but Ella suggested they find a crossing, as Verdantia was getting busier the further they made it. The group agreed and donned their disguises as they spotted a

bridge in the distance.

The only problem was that a fortress guarded the middle of the bridge, and Ella spotted soldiers patrolling the top. While walking toward it, Halime commented nervously, ”I have a

bad feeling, girls.”

”If we get caught, we will use our magic to destroy the gate and any soldiers that get in our way,” Maeve said with a knowing smile.

They all agreed it was the best plan, except for Talila, who wanted to find another way around but was outvoted. The five of them stepped onto the bridge and approached the fortressʼs

gate.

Ella was about to speak when their disguises suddenly deactivated, startling everyone around them. An alarm rang out immediately, prompting a swift reaction. The half-elf and Talila quickly pulled out their bows and fired explosive arrows at the fortress gates.

Maeve and Nala quickly intercepted the Church Knights that charged at them. The two girls moved like masters, dodging attacks while cutting down several men. Even more enemy soldiers appeared, but a wave of poison took them out.

Halime stood behind the girls and continued to cast her deadly spells that sowed fear into the

knights. Soon enough, the gate crumbled in on itself, allowing the five to rush forward as

Talila took out her short swords.

They fought through the Church Knights until a shieldwall appeared in the gateway, but

Halime sprinted toward them and transformed into his Black Mamba form before crashing

into it.

The soldiers were crushed, and the way forward was clear as the snake girl went crazy and destroyed the fortress.